The Library's Guardian Angels
by mimaimi
Summary: The Weeping Angels return, and it's Clara's first encounter with them. The T.A.R.D.I.S lands in the middle of California, and there's nothing around except for a huge building, a library. Read to found out what happens :P


Whoosh... whoosh.. Autumn leaves swirled around as the T.A.R.D.I.S materialized on the empty street in San Diego, California. The door opened and Clara's head poked out.

"It's empty, I can't see any buildings or forms of life here. Doctor! It's not New York," Clara yelled over her shoulder to the Doctor. Clara stepped out of the T.A.R.D.I.S and was quickly accompanied by the Doctor. He looked around and sighed.

"It's the T.A.R.D.I.S, she's not doing well today. She's not taking us further," he said. Clara didn't reply, but she scanned the area, and spotted a building on the far horizon.

"Oh! It's California!..." the Doctor exclaimed happily, "I don't like this state.." he finished. Clara scoffed quietly.

"Can we look around?" she asked.

"Why? There's nothing around here, let's go back and wait until the T.A.R.D.I.S is okay again," Clara rushed off towards the building without saying anything. The Doctor closed the door and reluctantly followed in her direction. Clara was a long way off, but he finally caught up with her when she stopped in front of the building she saw from the T.A.R.D.I.S. Other than the occasional clump of dry grass, the building was the only other thing around. Clara slowly walked up to building.

"I wonder what this building is for," she said and started to come up to the double doors of the huge building. The Doctor, sensing something was wrong, pulled out his screwdriver and pointed it at the house.

"CLARA! Come back! That building isn't safe!" Clara didn't look back, but became more drawn into the house. He ran up to Clara, she spun around when his hand made contact with her shoulder.

"What? Doctor, you overreact over everything, I'll be fine!"

"No.. these readings.. they're impossible, there's no way..." he looked up at the mysterious building again,

"Well, this building will be perfect for me, then! Aren't I the "Impossible Girl"? she said tauntingly.

"Oi! Don't go talking about that all around!"

She ignored him once again, placed her hand on the brass doorknob, and opened up the doors. The room inside was huge, there were countless shelves of books and a staircase leading up to another floor. The carpet was red, soft to the touch and walls for deep brown. A single chandelier hung from the ceiling. The only other light sources were the lamps embedded in each of the shelves of books.

Clara continued to walk further into the building, the Doctor followed, screwdriver at the ready.

"Clara, I'm telling you now, this place is dangerous, you're CRAZY going into a place that has readings that are IMPOSSIBLE. Now, the sooner we get out of here, the better," he reached for her hand, but she pulled it away.

"I want to look around, and what's so scary about a library full of books anyway?" Memories of the Vashta Nerada came back to the Doctor.

"You have no idea..." he said as Clara walked away. A few minutes later, Clara came across a chair and table set made out of mahogany. A single book lay on the table. She reached out and picked the book up with her hand, she turned to the first page and found a note in it instead. The note read: Hello, sweetie! A gentle smile played on Clara's lips, of course...

"Hey! Doctor! I think River left you something," she handed him the book as he walked over. He flipped the pages completely ignoring the note. His eyes widened, he dropped the book back on the desk.

"We have to get out of here, NOW," he snatched Clara's hand, making sure his grip was firm enough so she couldn't let go.

"What? Why? If River gave you that note, then it means she wants you to do something. You can't walk away!" she said as the Doctor towed Clara to the door.

"That book, Clara, was Professor River Song's book of weeping angels, a book, which is NOT supposed to be here," not answering Clara's question at all. He resumed going to the doors when the lights started to flicker, and suddenly, they turned off, leaving Clara and the Doctor in complete, pitch, darkness."Damn it," the Doctor swore under his breath.

"Tell me what the hell is going on!" Clara screamed at him. Instead of answering her, he dragged her into one of the nearby corners. They were deep in the library, they had no means of escape other than the front door, which they could not reach. His eyes darted around wildly, they were coming.

"The Weeping Angels, they're a species of quantum locked creatures. They have the appearance of statues, but they are very, very dangerous. They can move when you're not looking. Even if you BLINK, they can move. They cover their eyes because they can't look at each other. Otherwise they would freeze forever, this is why they're called the Weeping Angels, their eyes being covered give them a form of weeping. Keep your eyes open, we need to find a way out of here," The Doctor's eyes rapidly darted around as he explained the weeping angels to Clara.

"But, have you ever encountered them? Doctor, why is River's book here anyways? I don't know what to do," she told him. He reached into his pocket and pulled out two small flashlights.

"But - how?"

"Don't, I've given up asking. Now, I'm going to try and find a way out, and we forget we EVER came here, understand me, Clara?" he flicked on his flashlight and turned around. He froze in his tracks. Where his light was shining, was a single weeping angel. Its hands were on its cheeks, its blank eyes stared straight at them.

"Doctor, what do we do?" Clara looked at the angel, scared and confused.

"Remember what I told you.. they can't move as long as you're looking at them. Don't blink," he dared not look at Clara as he spoke. "Keep your eyes on this one, turn on your flashlight. I'll slip away and make sure there aren't any angels around. When I give you the signal, carefully move away from the angel," Clara switched on her flashlight and shone it onto the angel, the Doctor carefully slid away. Clara could barely make out his body shape if it hadn't been for the flashlight.

"Umm... Clara.. don't panic, but we're surrounded by these angels," the Doctor called over to Clara. Clara's eyes widened, she had never encountered these creatures before, and judging from the fact that the Doctor was so scared, she knew she should be too.

"What do I do?" she yelled back, still unblinkingly.

"Just stay where you are! And don't blink!" he replied with a shout. "Also, don't look the angel in the eye! Look at its feet of whatever!" Clara quickly averted her eyes to the angel's feet rather than its face. She heard a scratching sound, like a long, sharp fingernail scratching a chalkboard. Clara looked at the angel's hand, it had long and sharp fingernails..

"Doctor! I think there are more of them coming in! Doctor! I can hear them!" she shouted in hope that he would react and save the day, but unfortunately, there was no answer.

"Doctor! Are you there? I don't know what to do and I cannot not blink much longer! Doctor! What is it going to do to me?" her voice faltered as the realization of what was happening starting to sink in. Whatever the angels did to the Doctor, they would do to her unless she thought of something. The book! He said it was River's book of weeping angels. It had to provide some information on how to defeat them or even kill them, she thought. On the good side, the River's book was only a few feet away from where Clara was standing. On the bad side, there was another angel standing there, its arm outstretched, inches away from the book. She couldn't keep her eyes on both to get the book.

She blinked, and the angel in front of her moved forward a little and opened its mouth, baring its fang. The angel near the book grabbed it, but didn't have time to pick it up because Clara opened her eyes again. She needed a new plan. To save herself, and the Doctor. Clara decided that she needed to get out and forget the book. If River wanted them to do something, she would have to wait. She carefully maneuvered her way out of the spot she was in. Careful that she didn't take her eyes of the angels, she walked backwards, towards where she thought the door was. She stopped in her tracks. That scratching sound, she heard it again. More angels were near. She braced herself and turned around, scanning for more angels. The angel with the book turned is body fully around to face Clara, and it moved forward. The other angel turned, too and advanced towards Clara. Clara whipped around again. She saw the two angels advanced.

"Listen, I just want to have my friend back," she said to the angels, uncertain if they could even reply. "Of course not.. you're just statues. Just statues," she said, trying to reassure herself that the angels aren't as harmful as the Doctor said they were. Clara slowly backed away from the angels. She saw the door when turned around. It was only a few yards away, she could make it. She could figure out how to defeat them outside. That's when it hit her, she knew nothing about these creatures. What they were, what they do, nothing.. She needed that book, but the angel took it. There had to be another way. The T.A.R.D.I.S archives! She could get the information from the T.A.R.D.I.S.

Clara quickened her pace as she backed away. She knew it was just a few more feet until she could burst out of the library. Clara heard a book clutter. She spun around and she saw it, another angel. She spun back and saw the two other angels advancing. She couldn't look at them both at the same time. She looked back and forth, helplessly as the 3 angels came for her. She recalled the Doctor's words.. They can't look at each other, otherwise they would freeze forever. That's it! As soon the 3 angels were about to grab her, she ducked down. Two of the angels were staring at each other. They froze. Clara realized that she was sweating and her hand holding the flashlight was shaking. Unfortunately, one of the angels was smart enough to cover its eyes again.

"Ha ha! Guess you're not so dangerous after all, then," she laughed and kept her eyes on the angel that was covering its eyes. She slowly reached her hand for the River's book, still in the frozen angel's hand. She stood up, staring at the unfrozen angel. She reached for the brass doorknob of the double doors. She turned it, it wouldn't open, she had almost expected that the door would be locked. She tried again, it wasn't locked, it was jammed. She couldn't open it without taking her eyes of the angel. She glanced down at the doorknob, the angel moved forward, hands off its eyes. Clara looked up, the angel would only have to travel a few more feet to get her. She prepared for the worst. Now or never.

She turned around and tried desperately to open the door. The angel was coming. 4 feet... 3 feet... 2 feet.. 1... it stretched its hand, the door opened and Clara turned around. The angel stopped in its tracks, unable to move. Clara yelped in surprise. But she did it. She got out, she had the book. Only one problem, the Doctor was gone.

She walked backwards, trying to get as far as she could away from the angel. When she was a good 5 yards away, she blinked. The angel didn't move, it gave up. Clara sensed something was wrong, but shrugged it off, all that matters was that she was alive, and the Doctor was too, probably. She backed away a few more yards, and finally turned around and ran to the T.A.R.D.I.S as if there was no tomorrow. Clara panted as she reached the T.A.R.D.I.S, she looked behind her once again, making sure the angel wasn't following her. She snapped her fingers, the T.A.R.D.I.S opened on her command. Clara walked into the T.A.R.D.I.S, unaware that the angel was following her. She left the door opened, she needed fresh air. Clara sat in the Doctor's wheely chair and examined the book she had taken.

She flipped through the pages, weeping angels, time, whatnot was picked up as she flipped through the pages. She finally found a page that she wanted to read. "The angels zap their victims back in time, and let them live to their death. They feed on the energy from the years that person would've lived," Clara murmured those words over and over to herself as she flipped through more pages.

"How do I bring him back?!" she finally yelled to no one after she read a couple more pages.

She looked up after a few minutes, she decided to find some information about the angels from the T.A.R.D.I.S archive. She forced herself to get up and walk into another room.

Meanwhile, the angel whom Clara thought gave up chasing her, entered the T.A.R.D.I.S. It closed the door and came over to the T.A.R.D.I.S console. It suddenly switched on buttons, and off the T.A.R.D.I.S went.

Clara felt the T.A.R.D.I.S taking off, she quickly ran to the console room, only to find the angel standing there.

"No! Where are we going?! Stop it!" she screamed at the angel. It merely stood and smiled. Clara had no idea how to stop them, and she knew she wouldn't be able to get it off the ship. She also knew that she couldn't be sent back in time, then no one would be able to stop the angel. Clara imagined a creature like the angel, traveling about time and space, it could do serious damage. It was all up to her to stop the angel and save the Doctor, up to Clara Oswin Oswald.


End file.
